Solo

A James Bond novel written by William Boyd. It is 1969 and James Bond is about to go solo, recklessly motivated by revenge. A seasoned veteran of the service, 007 is sent to single-handedly stop a civil war in the small West African nation of Zanzarim. Aided by a beautiful accomplice and hindered by the local militia, he undergoes a scarring experience which compels him to ignore M's orders in pursuit of his own brand of justice.

Trigger Mortis: A James Bond Novel

James Bond is back where he belongs. Anthony Horowitz's new novel is a thrilling tour de force, sure to delight fans of the original 007 novels and new readers alike. It also features previously unseen material written by Bond's creator, Ian Fleming. The story begins in the lethal world of Grand Prix and an attempt by the Russians to sabotage a race at Nürburgring, the most dangerous track in Europe.

Licence Renewed

The first of John Gardner's novels featuring Ian Fleming's secret agent. Bond has been assigned to investigate one Dr. Anton Murik, a brilliant nuclear physicist who is thought to have been meeting with a terrorist known as Franco. Together, they plan to hijack six nuclear power plants around the world and start a global meltdown, unless Bond can stop them...

Zero Minus Ten: James Bond Series

In the Australian desert, a nuclear bomb explodes. There are no survivors and no clues about who has made it or detonated it. In England, two police officers are shot dead when they apprehend a cargo vessel in Portsmouth dock. Vast quantities of heroin are later found on board.

Renegades

As a member of the Counter Terrorist Unit, Sean Doyle thought he'd seen it all. Every violent act, every depraved action man could perpetrate against man but he is to discover that there are much worse things in this world than even he has encountered. Tracking a group of renegade terrorists from London to the Republic of Ireland, Doyle and his partner must discover who is funding these men and why. What he discovers is beyond even his experience and threatens not just his life but his sanity too.

Colonel Sun: James Bond, Book 15

The life of secret agent James Bond has begun to fall into a pattern that threatens complacency...until the sunny afternoon when M is kidnapped. The action ricochets across the globe to a volcanic Greek island, where Colonel Sun Liang-tan of the People's Liberation Army of China collaborates with an ex-Nazi atrocity expert in a world-menacing conspiracy. Stripped of all professional aids, Bond faces, unarmed, the monstrous devices of Colonel Sun....

The Road to Wigan Pier

A graphic and biting polemic that still holds a fierce political relevance and impact despite being written over half a century ago. First published in 1937 it charts George Orwell's observations of working-class life during the 1930s in the industrial heartlands of Yorkshire and Lancashire. His depictions of social injustice and rising unemployment, the dangerous working conditions in the mines amid general squalor and hunger also bring together many of the ideas explored in his later works and novels.

The One That Got Away

Graduate students Zoë and Holli only mean to blow off some steam on their road trip to Las Vegas. But something goes terribly wrong on their way home, and the last time Zoë sees her, Holli is in the clutches of a sadistic killer. Zoë flees with her life, changed forever.

Back in DC after successful missions in Edinburgh and Tangier, assassin Will Robie sees his latest assignment, to eliminate a US government employee, go badly wrong. What had she done? Or what did she know? Robie is now a wanted man. But it seems that he's not the only one on the run. Young teenager Julie Getty is devastated by the inexplicable murder of her parents. Robie and Julie meet when he saves her from an attempt on her life as they are trying to leave town....

Eye For An Eye: DI Gilchrist , Book 1

One psychopath. One killer. The Stabber. Six victims, all wife beaters. Each stabbed to death through their left eye. Six victims, all wife beaters. Each stabbed to death through their left eye. The cobbled lanes and backstreets of St Andrews provide the setting for these brutal killings.

Wolf's Head: The Forest Lord

After viciously assaulting a corrupt but powerful clergyman Robin Hood flees the only home he has ever known in Wakefield, Yorkshire. Becoming a member of a notorious band of outlaws, Hood and his new companions - including John Little and Will Scaflock - hide out in the great forests of Barnsdale, fighting for their very existence as the law hunts them down like animals. When they are betrayed, and their harsh lives become even more unbearable, the band of friends seeks bloody vengeance.

Broadchurch: The Official Novel

The unmissable Broadchurch novel, inspired by the first season of 2013's mega-hit ITV series. Containing never-before-seen material and adding great depth and insights to the unforgettable cast of characters, this is a must-listen not only for everyone who loved the TV programme ahead of the second series but for all fans of evocative, atmospheric crime drama.

Casino Royale (with Interview)

For James Bond and the British Secret Service, the stakes couldn't be higher. 007's mission is to neutralise the Russian operative Le Chiffre by ruining him at the baccarat table, forcing his Soviet masters to 'retire' him. When Le Chiffre hits a losing streak, Bond discovers his luck is in - that is, until he meets Vesper Lynd, a glamorous agent who might yet prove to be his downfall.

Killing Hope: Gabe Quinn Thriller, Book 1

"Celebrity Cop" Gabe Quinn is back working Robbery-Homicide after a personal tragedy has left him emotionally bare. He's raw, but resolved to catch a serial killer stalking the streets of two major cities. With cryptic clues left at each crime scene, Gabe is faced with the seemingly impossible task of piecing together the bizarre puzzle - following signs that point toward a killer whose motive questions everything he believes in..."If you could save a million lives by taking one...would you?"

The Kill List

The Kill List: a top-secret catalogue of names held at the highest level of the US government. On it, those men and women who would threaten the world's security. And at the top of it, The Preacher, a radical Islamic cleric whose sermons inspire his followers to kill high-profile Western targets in the name of God. As the bodies begin to pile up in America, Great Britain and across Europe, the message goes out: discover this man's identity, locate him and take him out.

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

When Ravi Kapoor, an overworked London doctor, is driven beyond endurance by his disgusting and difficult father-in-law, he asks his wife: "Can't we just send him away somewhere? Somewhere far, far away." His prayer seems to have been answered when his entrepreneurial cousin, Sonny, sets up a retirement home, recreating a lost corner of England in a converted guesthouse in Bangalore.

The Skeleton Road

When a skeleton is discovered hidden at the top of a gothic Victorian building in Edinburgh, which is scheduled for renovation, Cold Case Squad detective Karen Pirie is given the task of identifying the decades-old bones. Her investigation leads her back to past conflicts, false identities and buried secrets...

The Cobra

The cocaine industry is worth billions of dollars a year to the drug cartels who spread their evil across Western society, causing incalculable misery, poverty and death. Slowly, gradually, inexorably it is spreading and it is a blight which must be stopped. One man, Paul Devereaux, intellectual, dedicated, utterly ruthless and ex-CIA special ops, is given what seems like an impossible task. At his disposal is anything he wants - men, resources, money. And he will not stop until he has completed his mission.

Eeny Meeny

The girl emerged from the woods, barely alive. Her story was beyond belief. But it was true. Every dreadful word of it. Days later, another desperate escapee is found - and a pattern is emerging. Pairs of victims are being abducted, imprisoned then faced with a terrible choice: Kill or be killed. Would you rather lose your life or lose your mind? Eeny Meeny is an electrifying debut, with the nerve-shredding intensity of Saw and Along Came a Spider.

The Eye of Minds: Mortality Doctrine, Book 1

From James Dashner, the author of the New York Times best-selling Maze Runner series, comes an edge-of-your seat adventure. The Eye of Minds is the first book in The Mortality Doctrine, a series set in a world of hyperadvanced technology, cyberterrorists, and gaming beyond your wildest dreams...and your worst nightmares. To catch a hacker, you need a hacker. For Michael and the other gamers, the VirtNet can make your wildest fantasies become real.

The House of Silk

It is November 1890 and London is gripped by a merciless winter. Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson are enjoying tea by the fire when an agitated gentleman arrives unannounced at 221b Baker Street. He begs Holmes for help, telling the unnerving story of a scar-faced man with piercing eyes who has stalked him in recent weeks.

Knots and Crosses

'And in Edinburgh of all places. I mean, you never think of that sort of thing happening in Edinburgh, do you...?' 'That sort of thing' is the brutal abduction and murder of two young girls. And now a third is missing, presumably gone to the same sad end. Detective Sergeant John Rebus, smoking and drinking too much, his own young daughter spirited away south by his disenchanted wife, is one of many policemen hunting the killer.

Publisher's Summary

The face of war is changing. The other side doesn't play by the rules much anymore. There's thinking, in some circles, that we need to play by a different set of rules too....

Fresh from Afghanistan, James Bond has been recruited to a new agency. Conceived in the post-9/11 world, it operates independent of Five, Six and the MoD, with its very existence deniable. Its aim: to protect the Realm, by any means necessary.

The Night Action alert calls Bond from dinner with a beautiful woman. GCHQ has decrypted an electronic whisper about an attack scheduled for later in the week: casualties estimated in the thousands, British interests adversely affected. And 007 has been given carte blanche to do whatever it takes to fulfil his mission.

I originally thought of buying this novel for the Kindle but was put off by some of the reviews on Amazon, when I saw it on here I thought that I'd give it a chance.

I'm so glad that I did, excellent book. As someone that's read a lot of the original Ian Fleming novels this comes across as Fleming writing it, the attention to detail, character and style all sit well with the original.

Toby Stephens does a cracking job reading it and really adds to the excitement.

James Bond is rebooted for the 21st century just has the new films have done, so now Bond has once again for the first time since the 60`s got both a written and film life set in the same era with a younger Bond unlike the older Bond in most of the other non Fleming books.
The changes needed to do this are not as drastic as most fans would have you believe and are both logical and believable.
This book is well plotted and written by Jeffery Deaver who while not replacing Fleming does understand and respect the character.
The book is very well read by Toby Stephens who was in Die Another Day as the villan and has played Bond in two radio plays for radio 4.

I am about 4 hours in so far and feel the need to review already! The story is good and the plot is interesting - seems to be James Bond in the Daniel Craig style...which I like, but the reason I am writing so early is just to applaud Toby Stephens - his narration is (in my view) superb. The accents are correct, the pace is good and there are lovely little details such as when reading the vocal of an answerphone message he speaks into a can or something to make the voice sound tinny. Hands down the best production of any audio book I have read/heard to date (this is number 23 in my library). If you like action/thriller books and have been disappointed by the quality of the voice acting *cough Tom Clancy *cough then give this a try and just sit and smile.

Real James Bond but new; with a realistic and true espionage world. Certainly not Judie Dench withs sci-fi glass moving IT images around like some all knowing and super slick agency. To my mind this is as Flemming would have wrote James Bond if he had started today. Believable, interesting, modern, yet still authentic; and thank god nothing like the films.

Deaver has quite clearly put a lot of thought into this first exploit of his 21st century 007. The plot is full of suspense, action, and twists, all of which made it a gripping listen – but it was the many 'upgrades' to Fleming's characters that raised a number of smiles. It's not just that gadgets have transferred to apps, or that MI6 has transferred to a new Churchill-inspired secret agency. Goodnight is still there as 007's secretary, but with an entirely new backstory, as is his housekeeper. And just when you think there is no way 007 could get out of a tricky situation, he is able to turn to a friend. If you don't know the Fleming books, you could interpret these characters as dei ex machina. But to those well-versed in 007 lore, you will kick yourself for not seeing them coming.

The character of 007 himself goes quite a bit beyond the dry mystery-solver of early books, reminding me more of the Fleming's writing from "Diamonds Are Forever" onwards (by which time he was probably being influenced by Connery's portrayal on camera). A lot of the action sequences seem more reminiscent of the films than the books. But in my opinion, Deaver always manages to hold it back – the result being that 007 is different, but more like a younger version of Fleming's original than a totally new 'hip' 007. And unlike with Craig's 007, who still seems a tad immature, you can clearly see that Deaver's will grow into Fleming's aftera few years of the job. Thus the book can easily be enjoyed by big fans of the originals or the films.

That's not to say it isn't without faults. I would have preferred a certain character to end up with a wooden leg, for instance. And the amount of twists began to get predictable, so that by the end I could successfully guess (a) that it wasn't over yet, and (b) that 007 had already put a plan into action. But the writing is fast-paced and witty, and made you want to find out what would happen to the characters as well as the plot. Hence still 5 stars.

All of those who enjoyed reading the original bond books should be fairly pleased with this itteration by Jeffery Deaver. Despite being an Americal author Deaver has managed to accurately capture the authentic Britishness of this very specific genre with only the odd few errors. He has craftlily moved Bond away from MI6 to a stand alone organisation and as such has permitted a variety of plausable liberties to be taken. Like the original it is all a little bit over the top in terms of Bonds knowlege, abilities and cars. All true secret service agencies rely on grey men with undistinguished features that do not raise interest and hence alarm in those being followed. A huge powerful Bently stands out as if Bond were wearing a flourescent yellow suit with I am a spy picked out in red. However the story is vey well done and I would like more please.

This is a skilful updating of the James Bond franchise, and I think it is better than Ian Fleming, whose stories left me a little bored many years ago. Bond retains his penchant for fast cars, his attraction for women, and his ability to think faster than the people around him, but his armoury now includes an iPhone with specialist apps such as a retina reader to identify people and an eavesdropping function, and he is able to draw on a world-wide resource which improvises and supplies him with cunning devices to enable him to overcome all difficulties. The story is well-constructed, with some depth to the characters, a good complex plot with plenty of misdirections, and several good twists at the end. The author left me looking forward to the next story. Toby Stephens is good as the reader, with his mastery of all the accents in the book.

This is James Bond at his best. Jeffrey Deaver wears Ian Fleming's shoes very comfortably and has produced a Bond story in the classic style. Lots of interweaving plots that hold you until the end. A long book, but my attention did not waiver. I was not expecting much of Toby Stevens as the narrator, but he was brilliant. He donned the accents of the different characters effortlessly and brought them to life. He was a major reason why the story gripped me from start to finish. I thoroughly recommend this as a really entertaining listen.

Although I found this audio book started off slow, the pace did pick up and eventually and I was gripped from then on.

I was tempted to abandon this but the first chapter tries to set the scene and mood for the rest of the book and does so in a classical style, which isn't my usual taste. However, if you stick with it, you may be pleasantly surprised.

I've read a few of the Flemming originals and none of them were as well researched and richly described as Jeffery Deaver has done in Carte Blanche. South African's will love the setting in Cape Town. I thoroughly enjoyed this book; good pace,not too cliched, good twists...and all the features that make James Bond such a successful character. Toby Stephens is also very good at recreating the scenes and helping your imagination along through his involved reading style. Highly recommended!

4 of 6 people found this review helpful

Donovan

Pretoria, South Africa

01/10/12

Overall

Performance

Story

"Bond Revived."

If you could sum up Carte Blanche in three words, what would they be?

Exciting, suspensful and well written

What was one of the most memorable moments of Carte Blanche?

The ending.

What about Toby Stephens’s performance did you like?

His deep voice was well suited to the type of novel and his South African accent was good.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

"Doing whatever it takes"

Any additional comments?

Only thing that would have improved the book is when they do the music interludes between sections is to have played the Bond theme song.

1 of 3 people found this review helpful

Jacobus

Johannesburg, South Africa

09/12/11

Overall

Performance

Story

"Deaver's lack of knowledge of S.A. sinks the book"

Sometimes a book with promise is ruined by a writer's lack of knowledge he is writing about. This is exactly the case with Jeffery Deaver's Carte Blanche. While the story line may be typically action Bond, Deaver's Bheka Jordaan (a Police woman with a Zulu mother and an Afrikaner father, living in the Cape Malay Bo-Kaap) is totally unbelievable. When Bond visits her at her home, she serves him "bobotie" and "mageu" (referred to as Zulu beer), what a combination! To make things worse Jordaan a captain the South African Police Service wears a revolver, while all SAPS members are issued with a baretta or Z88 pistol. She speaks Zulu in a dominantly Afrikaans area. I could understand if it was Xhosa, but Zulu in Cape Town! She works for the Crime Combatting and Investigation Division of the SA Police Service. There is no such Division. She should've worked for Crime Intelligence. Furthermore a Warrant Officer in the Service when addressed is only called "Warrant." A Subaru is hired for Bond, come on! Furthermore Deaver's idea that a English-speaking person from Huguenot descend is an Afrikaner is really weird. Mopanie worms are only found in Limpopo and the Northern Provinces of South Africa, but a restaurant that would be better of selling "Snoek" in Cape Town, sells these. Deaver's bad research and even his wrong use of Afrikaans and Zulu words makes the story unbelievable to the point of being ridiculous. Toby Stephens' "covert" reading style is something you can get used to, but his mispronunciation of words like "Xhosa," "gevaar," "arbeid" etc. shows that he didn't even try to find out how Afrikaans, Xhosa and Zulu is spoken. I give an overall rating of three because it is Bond and definitely better than Sebastian Faulks' Devil May Care, but unfortunately Jeffery Deaver's inadequate research and understanding of South Africa cripples a promising story.

0 of 5 people found this review helpful

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